Pieces of a Puzzle Falling Together
by IamAnubis117
Summary: Diane spent years trying to figure out her partner, Will Gardner. Something never quite added up, but she soon discovers it is the small pieces that make the big picture. pre-series/ pilot. Will/Diane and Will/Alicia


This is a little something that came to me the other day when I was reflecting on the show. Pre series/ pilot.

Diane had spent years trying to figure him out. He was her partner not only in name, but also in spirit. They were Stern, Lockhart and Gardner. She found you learned a lot about a person though every case and every late night. She understood how he thought. He could be cocky as hell and they had their ups and downs, but at the end of the day she could count on him. There was something about him from the moment he walked through the door that she found intriguing. He was cocky, but he was also a damn good lawyer and he immediately gained her respect. Sometimes she questioned his methods, but she never doubted his skills as a lawyer, but she always wanted to know the man behind the lawyer. She rarely ever saw Will instead seeing Will Gardner, Defense Attorney. Diane was a professional and so she respected that and was okay with only knowing Will on a professional level. But, as the years went by she was curious about him. His office was right across from hers so she occasionally watched him, trying to figure out that thing that was missing. Will was a puzzle and she just could not put the pieces together. She gained new pieces as time went all, but she knew she was missing a major piece, but she could not figure out what. This is the reason she cared about this and was unable to let it go. Granted, she did not spend very much of her time trying to figure it out, but it would cross her mind now and again. It was a mystery and Diane liked answers, but she did not even know what to ask. They never spoke about it, but she collected snippets of information over the years.

She knew how he thought having spent years with him at her side. Silently and sometimes even out loud she tried to figure him out. He was a good guy though he went out of his way to make the impression that he was an asshole who would do anything to move up in his career. He was relatively young for his position as partner at a top firm. He worked day in and day out to make that happen. He had married his job. The thing was she did not know why. Sometimes she thought it was because he had a commitment phobia or may he just really liked being a playboy. He had women vying for his attention left and right hoping that they would be able to settle him into a relationship.

None of them were ever successful. She never saw him with a serious relationship in all the time she had known him. Furthermore, he had never talked about ever having a serious girlfriend. The best she got on the rare occasion such a conversation arose was that he had a somewhat serious relationship with a girl, Helena. Maybe the name was wrong, but some how it seemed important and so she held onto that small piece of information. She wondered if she was the one that got away. However, she quickly came to the conclusion that he had liked her, but not much else.

She would sometimes look up from her desk and look through all the glass and see him sitting there working on something. This happened when particularly when she was dealing with divorce cases or some other sort of love affair gone wrong type of case. That's when these thoughts would happen. This was the only time she thought about it and during these was the only time she ever asked questions of him in regard to his personal life.

She wondered if he had ever been in love. There was no indication he had. He was married to the job and she respected that. She never thought the marriage thing was right for her either. But, that didn't mean she had never been in love.

Maybe he was destine to be alone and maybe that was how he wanted it. She was sure he got lonely from time to time because she did too. They led a hard life, a grueling one in order to keep their firm a float especially in the last couple of years as the legal market took a downturn. She was sure it would get worse and they would have to fight to stay at the top. She also knew she would not choose anyone other than Will Gardner for that fight.

She heard the State's Attorney, Peter Florrick, was going to be holding a press conference later that afternoon. She had seen the news and the photos, the speculation. On this day, something seemed off about Will. She did not pay much attention to it as she figured he was in another one of his moods. She left him be. The conference was to begin soon so she turned on her TV. As she waited for the announcement. She was sure it would be his resignation. With that evidence, it couldn't be anything else. She was looking down at her files when she heard a light knock on her door. There stood her partner in crime, but something was off. He asked to join her in watching the conference. He did not have a TV in his office though he was considering adding one. He had told her he was afraid it might be distracting. She believed that because he would be tempted to turn on a basketball or baseball game and hours would get wasted. They always met in her office when they needed to watch something live. She did not have to say anything gesturing for him to sit. He did. He looked nervous and sad possibly even angry.

Peter Florrick made his announcement. The resignation came as no surprise to Diane. She wondered who would replace him. She was about to voice her concern to her partner, they needed the right kind of states attorney. It made all the difference.

Will eat there staring at the TV and continued to do so even as the press conference ended and the channel went back to the local news. They were silent. She let him sit there knowing that if and when he wanted to talk he would. He got up and looked out her window, he often did this when he was thinking. She put her case notes down knowing that he would speak soon.

"Do you think she'll leave him?" It was soft and vulnerable. In all the years she'd known him, she had never heard him speak like this.

"Who? Alicia Florrick?"

"Yeah." He turned to face her for the first time.

"I don't know. I guess we will see in the coming months. This scandal has only begun for Peter. She'd have to be the a very dedicated woman to have a marriage survive that. Not that I'd know, but those pictures. The other charges that will come up..." She realized she was rambling because she just didn't know where this conversation was going. He stared at her for a moment before turning back to the window. Still silent. Diane was about to go back to her case when he spoke. She had a lot to do and just figured Will was working something out in his head.

"She's the most dedicated and loyal woman in this world." He stated almost bitterly.

Before Diane could respond, he had walked out of the office. Back into his own for only a moment before leaving. She sat there wondering what just happened and the Will's words resonated for days.

About three weeks later, he dropped a resume on her desk. "For the junior associate position. I'm going to hire her." He had always been bold with his opinions and often led to him refusing to yield any ground. But, something was off. He turned around and was out of her office as soon as he said what he had to say apparently. She looked down at the paper. The resume of Alicia Florrick sat on her desk. She did not know why he was determined to hire her. She stared at the paper. The woman had been out of the law for 15 years. Why would he want her? Did he feel sorry for her? He wasn't the kind of guy who did that sort of thing. This couldn't be a pity hire in this economic climate. He had his reasons. She hoped to get him to get him to elaborate soon. She wasn't sure hiring a Florrick was a good plan. The name meant a lot in this town. Not really in a positive light these days.

He fought for it. She gave in. They'd hire two junior associates and let one go in six months. She liked Cary Agos. He was ambitious and was a take no prisoners kind of guy. They needed all of that they could get these days. But, she compromised with Will because it hadn't relented and wasn't going to back down.

She had not really studied Alicia Florrick's resume. She figured all she needed to know was the woman had been out of the law for 15 years and that may prove to be challenging.

Not looking more closely at the resume would be a decision she would soon regret. It was Alicia Florrick's first day. So, Diane pulled the resume out again to know a little more about the woman she had never met.

That's when she was it. Georgetown Law. The same graduating class as Will. The pieces started to align. His comment that night of the press conference made sense. He knew her. The most dedicated woman in the world. He was helping out an old friend. She knew Will was a good guy, but he rarely showed it. Sometimes she even thought he was a cocky playboy who did not do feelings. He did work. He won cases and pissed off half the city while doing so. She was happy to be reminded he was a good man somewhere under all the pretenses. She'd give the woman a fair shot. Obviously, Alicia Florrick had a good legal education and strong resume even though it was certainly outdated. Will must have known her from his days at Georgetown. Will rarely spoke of Georgetown and never spoke about friends he had there.

Diane realized on the afternoon of Alicia Florrick's first day that she'd misread the situation. She was in for one hell of a headache. It only took her a minute of watching Will speak to her to know. She stared at the duo in the office across the way. There was something about the way Will smiled and how he looked at her. It turned out that Will Gardner was capable of love. Unfortunately for both Will and Diane, he was in love with former state's attorney's wife. Suddenly, everything from her years of knowing Will came together. He was capable of love, but he was in love with not only a married woman, but one that was in front and center in the press these days.

She was happy for him. Smiled a little before realizing just what Will had gotten them into. She was going to be a junior associate at their firm. He was in love with their new junior associate. She had seen they had gone to Georgetown together, but never thought it was a love interest of his. She had long sense believed he was not that kind of man.

It turns out he was that kind of man. He was just in love with a woman that was out of reach. Diane needed Advil now; the headache was here and she was sure it wasn't going anywhere anytime soon. This would not end well. Not at all. She just didn't see it coming even after all the observation she had done. But, she watched a Will smile in a way she had never seen before. This scared her. Well, her life, her firm, and her partnership with Will Gardner just got a whole lot more complicated.

Diane sighed and looked down that the paper on her desk. She had a lot of work to do, but could not watch there interaction any longer. But, she had a strong feeling she wasn't going to have a choice and that she'd be watching them together a lot. She flipped open the latest case and tried to concentrate on that and not on the new complexities of her law firm.


End file.
